Credit-accounting register.



E. T. SILVIUS.

CREDIT ACCOUNTING REGISTER.

APPLICATION FILED MAR14I1911 Patented Jan. 18,1916.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 1- 'f l/mll/lll/lll WITNE&;: 1/ INVENTOR- THE COLUMBIA PLANO-GRAPH c0., WASHINGTON, D c.

E. T. SILVIUS. CREDIT ACCOUNTING REGISTER.

APPLICATION FILED MAR 4, I911.

Patented Jan. 18, 1916.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

[N VE N TOR:

WITNESSES.-

E. T. SlLVlUS.

CREDIT ACCOUNTING REGISTER.

APPLICATION FILED MARA, 1911. 1,168,754. 1 Patented Jan. 18, 1916.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.-

l rli'l llill.

IVITNESSES:

THE COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH C0., WASHINGTON, D. c.

E. T. SILVIUS.

CREDIT ACCOUNTING REGISTER.

APPLICATlON HLED MAR. 4, 1911- 1 1,168,754. Patented Jan. 18, 1916.

4 SHEETSSHEET 4.

INVENTOR:

W! T NE SSES:

THE COLUMBIA PLANUURM'H 1:0,, \vAsmNu-ruN. n. c.

MMT 1% a sra'rns TO THE MCGASKEY REGISTER COMPANY, INCORPORATED IN 1914,)OF ALLIANCE,

OHIO, A CORPORATION OF OHIO.

CREDIT-ACCOUNTING 'REGISTER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 18, 1916.

Application filed March 4, 1911; Serial No. 612,269.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, ELLIS T.S1LvIUs, a citizen of the United States, residing at Indianapolis, in the county of Marion and. State of Indiana, have invented a new and useful Credit-Accounting Register, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and

to the letters and figures of reference marked.

thereon.

This invention relates to filing appliances for systematically preserving commercial or other papers of various k1nds,-more especially bill-slips or duplicate invoices com monly used in credit accounting systems, the

invention having reference particularly to the class of filing appliances known as credit accounting registers which comprise essentially a plurality ofbill-holdingleaves hingedly connected together and normally supported in substantially upright position, and

movable forward to prone position for gaining access to the accounts represented by the bill slips.

The principal object of the'invention is to provide improved means for conneetingthe leaves together and supporting them in normal position in a case which with the leaves constitute a filing cabinet; a specific object being to provide simple and cheap clasping means adapted-to beused in connection with bill-holding leaves that are simply and cheaply connected together at the lower ends, for holdingthe. upper ends together in the case and preventing the leaves from falling forward, a further object being to provide improved means for assisting the leaves to rise to normal position after having been moved to prone position; and a still further object is to provide animproved'holder for the group of leaves when removed from the case.

The invention comprises certain novel fea tures of construction in filing appliancesof the above-mentioned character, andin the parts and combinations and arrangements of parts, as hereinafter particularly described and claimed. a

Referring tothe' drawings, Figure 1 is a front elevation of the credit accounting of the line A: A in Fig.1; Fig. .3, a fragmentary section approximately on the plane of the line B B in Fig. 1 with the leaves arrangedin prone position; Fig. 4, a fragmentary section on the line C C in Fig. 1; Fig. 5, a fragmentary perspective view of one of the bill-holding leaves; Fig. 6, a side elevation of the improved holder supporting the group of leaves removed from the case; Fig. 7, a perspective view of hinging connections suitable for connecting the leaves together; Fig. 8, a fragmentary section on the line D D in Fig. 1; F ig; 9, a fragmentary sectional elevation showing leaves in the holder Fig. 10, a perspective view of the holder for the leaves; Fig. 11, a fragmentary section on the plane of the line E E in Fig. l with the leaves in different positions; Fig. 12, a fragmentary section on the line F F in Fig. 1;

Fig. 13, a perspective view of the improved apparatus preferably employed for balancing the leaves; Fig. 1 1-, a fragmentary section on the plane of the line G G in Fig. 3; Fig. 15, a fragmentary section on the line H H in Fig. 1; Fig. 16, a perspective view of a modified form of'clasp for the leaves; Fig. 17, a fragmentary section as at the plane of the line A A in Fig. 1 with the modified form of clasp arranged in the case; Fig. 18, a fragmentary section as.at the planeof the line B B in Fig. 1, but showing the leaves connected together in non-stepped arrangement or as a rectangular pack and arranged in connection with the preferred form ofclasp; Fig. 19, a fragmentary perspective v ew showing the hinging connections of the leaves illustrated in the preced ing figure; and Fig. :20, a fragmentary section as at' the plane of the line A A in Fig. 1, but with the case provided with the modified form of claspand illustrating the man sponding elements or features of construc tion herein referred to and described.

In the construction of creditacc unting registers or filing cabinets, a suitable case is provided which may be variously c nstructed and may suitably comprise a bot tom 1, a relatively high back 2, sides 3 and 3" ofwhich the'forward portions are relatively low to constitute desk portions, and the rear portions are approximately as high as the back; a suitable front 1, and a top 5 on the front and the tops of the forward portions of the sides. The back 2 is provided with a plurality of pivot supports 6 and 6 for pivotally supporting the rearmost one of the leaves, there being a suitable number of leaves comprising a rear leaf 7, a front leaf 8 and intermediate leaves 9 which may be variously constructed in detail and provided with suitable means for retaining bill slips thereon, such as bill clamps 10, the leaves preferably being of frame-like form adapted to be arranged close together, but in the present case, as

v preferably connected together may be forced slightly apart when holding excessively large quantities of the bill slips. In some cases the rear leaf and the front leaf may be provided with doors 11 and 11, respectively,

for various uses as heretofore. In some cases each leaf has an oblique angled lower end 12 conforming to the angle in which the leaves are stepped. in normal position, and the lower forward portion of each leaf, which is acute angled, is provided with a pair of hinge-pins 13 and 13 preferably connected thereto by means of hinge-plates 14 and 1 1 secured to the leaf'and carrying the hinge-pin, a hinge-plate 15 or 15 being connected at opposite ends thereof to the hinge-pins of two adjacent leaves and normally extending against the oblique angled end 12 of the leaf. The lower rear portion of the rear leaf 7 is provided with pivots 16 and 16 which are normally supported on the pivot supports 6 and 6", re spectively. As preferably constructed, the middle portions of the leaves extend upward beyond the upper ends of the frame-like portions of the leaves which are broader than the middle portions, so that there are spaces between the ends of the middle portions, as is clearly illustrated in accordance with common practice. It should be understood that the rear leaf supported inthe case supports the weight of the forward leaves, all being hingedly connected together and preferably in echelon as illustrated in Figs. 1, 2, 8, 11, 15 and 17 particularly, but may be otherwise connected together, as will be hereinafter described. In order to prevent the leaves from falling forward from their normal position, a suitable bracket 17 is mounted on the back 2 and provided with a hinge-pin 18 to which is connected a clasp comprising an arm 19 which extends forwardly and has its forward end turned up-' wardly so as to constitute an oblique angled guide 19 facing downwardly and forwardly to be engaged by the upper ends of the leaves when swung to normal position, for'raising the arm, the under side of which has a plurality of hook-like projectionsv or fingers 20, 20, one for each leaf, the arm having oblique angled guides 19 extending from the base of one projection rearward to the extremity of the next rearward adjacent projection, so that the upper end of either leaf when moved upward toward normal position may push the arm upward until a projection or all of them may engage the forward sides of the upper ends of the leaves and prevent them from accidentally falling forward by the force of gravity. The clasp falls by force of gravity and is limited in its downward movement by means of a heel 21 extending downward from the pivotal connection thereof against the base of the bracket 17. The upper forward sides of the leaves'are provided with indexing characters 22 as usual, and the upper forward side of the front leaf 8 preferably is provided with rollers 23 and 23" toroll on the top 5 when the leaf is in prone position and moved in operation, but in some cases the rollers may be dispensed with ifdesired. In some cases the clasp may be constructed as in Figs. 1 6, 17 and 20, if desired, and it comprises two arms 24: and 24: onone end ofeach of which is a journal 25 or 25 alining i 8 each with the other and provided with journal boxes 26, 26, secured to the back 2, the inner ends of the journals being provided with lateral projections 27 and 27 adapted to engage the back 2 when the leaves are all in prone position to limit the downward movement of the arms, a rod 28 being integrally connected to the free ends of the. arms and adapted to engage the upper for ward portion of either one of the leaves when in approximately upright position or leaning forward slightly. v

In some cases, as in the more inexpensive construction of filing cabinets, the leaves 7, 8, 9, have squared or right angled lower ends 29 provided at both forward and rear sides with hinge-pins 30, 30, preferably connected thereto by a hinge-plate 31 supporting two hinge-pins and each hinge-plate secured to the leaf, by means of securing devices 32, and each hinge-plate is connected to a hinge-plate of an adjacent leaf so that the leaves are pivotally connected together at'the planes of their adjacent sides, and it them in place or substantially in the desired position, and in some cases it may be desirable to mechanically assist the operator to lift the leaves from prone position and assist the clasp to hold them up in normal position,

cally from prone position when not held down, and hold them up in normal osition independently of'the clasp, in which case the lower forward portion of the front leaf 8 is provided with a pivot 34, and an articulated arm is provided which. preferably com prises a main member 35 mounted on a pivot 36 which is suitably supported horizontally in the case, the member having a lug 37 on the upper side thereof near its pivoted end and is provided at its free end with a pivot 3? to which a fore-arm 39 is connected at one end thereof and extending upwardly and provided in the forward side of its free end with a recess 41 adapted to"pivotally receive the pivot 34:, for normally forcing the lower end of the front leaf in the'forward direction. The forward side of the fore-arm has a hook 4:2 thereon and preferably other hooks42 to one of which one end of a 001i spring 43 connected, the opposite end of the spring being connected to an HClJUSlH ing screw 44 thatextends m'ovably through the lug 37 and is providedwith an adjusting nut 45 normally seated against the forward side of the lug, for varying the-tension of the spring. In somecases a spring 46 preferably is supported in a suitable manner in the case and engages the under side of the member 35, being adapted to normally support the weight of the swingingend ofthje articulated arm, but may be ofany desired strength so as to force the forwardlea-ves upward with anydesired degree of force, the spring 13 acting to draw the free end of the fore-arm 39 forward and consequently tend to force the" lower ends of the leaves forward and also to force the forwardsides of the leaves upward, sinceeao'h leaf is pivotally supported at its rear side; andtherefore the upper ends of the leaves are normally forced rearward toward the back 2, so that the leaves may thus beheld innorinal posi tion' without entailing theexpense of the clasp.

In order to provide asmoothba se for the leaves when removed from the case'so' that they may slide freely intoor out of a fire proof safe, and in order to hold the free ends of the leaves together a suitable h'olderis desirable which preferably comprises a baseplate 47 from which-extends two upright supports 48 andetS provided. with lugs 49 and 49, respectively, the base plate having also a relatively low side part 50 provided with a hinge-rod 51, there preferably being ends 52 and 52 on the base plate, and a shutter 53 is connected to the hinge-rod and has two eyes 54 and 54 in which a rod 55 is rotatively supported and provided with arms 56 and 56 on its ends, the free ends of the arms having hooks 57 and 57 thereon to engage the lugs 49 and i9, so that the group of leaves may be placed upon the base-plate and secured between the supports 48 and 48 and the shutter53 and readily carried about without liability of the leaves moving apart at theirfree ends.

In practical use, the group of leaves'or holders for papers having been placed re- 'movably in the case so that the rearmost one of theleavesor holders is pivotally sup ported in the case, theclasp if employed is placed in connectionwith the upper end of the front leaf, so as to prevent the leaves from falling forward by the force of gravity, and if the hook type of clasp is employed all the leaves are held thereby individually, sothat when a number of the forward leaves are moved toprone position the remaining leaves maybe all held exactly at their normal position, as will be apparent; or if the several leaves remaining" upright are not held back while being clasped they may move forward slightly at their tops and stillbe caught by the hook-like projections of the arm and will then be retained in leaning position somewhat as shown'in-Fig. 20w In case the modified form of clasp is employed it will bennderstood that all the leavesremaining upright after some have been moved to prone position will'lean forwardly, the "rod or bar 28 embracing the foremost oneof the remaining upright leaves. After having had oneor more of the forward leaves in prone position the attendant will raise their free ends'until the rearward one of the leavesengages theinclined' guide 19 and raises the arm l9,permitting the leaves to move onback until they stand close together when the arm will drop into place and hold them, but -whenthe modified clasp is employed the "attendant will lift the bar 28*to permit the leaves to pass under it. In case the balancing spring whicliis mounted on the articulated arm is" employed it will be understood that the spring may be adj ustedto suit requirements, and when undersuifieient tension willhold the leaves up to normal position without the use "of the clasp or the clasp 'may be "used also to prevent unauthorized persons from readily operating the leaves. When it is desired to'remove the group or setofleaves from *th'ecase' the fore-arm 39 if used may readily be disconnected from the forward leaf and the'olasp may belifted'sufiiciently to permit the rear leaf to be lifted from its pivotal support. Thenthe leaves may be "readily placed in the leaf-holder and stored for safe keeping.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new, is

1. A credit-accounting register including a plurality of bill-holding leaves arranged in upright position, links pivotally connected to the lower forward portions of the leaves and extending forwardly under and connected to the forward portion of adja- 'lower ends inclined rearwardly and upwardly, a series of articulated links, one for each holder, for supporting the holders in stepped relationship, and pivotal connections between the front lower end of each holder and the adjacent link permitting the holder, to swing relative thereto and relative the next rearward holder.

4.. A credit-accounting register including a plurality of leaves hingedly'connected together, the rearmost leafbeing pivotally supported at its hingedly connected end, and an articulated arm pivotally supported and pivotally connected with the foremost leafand' provided with a spring normally forcing the pivotally connected portion of the arm away from the pivotal support of the rearmost leaf.

. A credit-accounting register including a plurality of leaves arranged normally in upright position, links pivotally connected together and to the lower portions of adjacent leaves, the links together extending from the rearmost one forwardly to the foremost one of the leaves, the rearmost one of the leaves being pivotally supported,

and yielding means for normally holding the links in forwardly extended position.

'6. A credit-accounting register including a case, a plurality of upright leaves hingedly connected together, a pivotal connection between the rearmost leaf and the case, an arm member pivotally supported in the case, a fore-arm pivotally mounted on the arm member and pivotally connected with the foremost leaf, and a spring suitably supported and connected with the fore-arm to force the latter. forwardly.

7. A credit-accounting register including a plurality of leaveshingedly connected together, the rearmost leaf being uprightly supportedv and supporting the remaining leaves normally in upright position, an arm' member pivotally supported, a fore-arm pivotally mounted on the arm member and pivotally connected with the foremost leaf, a coil-spring, and adjustable means connecting the spring with the arm member and the fore-arm.

,8. In a credit-accounting register, the combination with a case having a back, a plurality of leaves normallyarranged uprightly opposite the back, hinging connections connecting the lower ends of the leaves together, and means detachably connecting,

the rearmost leaf to the back, of an articulated arm pivotally supported in the case forward of the plane of the leaves and pivotally connected with the foremost leaf, and a spring suitably supported and connected with the arm for forcing the pivotally con of the hinge'plates, for holding the hingeplates substantially in alinement, and a plurality of bill-holding leaves pivotally connected at their lowerends to the hingeplates, a leaf to each.

10. In a filing appliance, the combination of a plurality of links, a plurality of hinge pins, each pin connecting two adjacent ones of the links together, a plurality of hinge members connected to the hinge pins respectively, a member to each pin whereby each member is pivotally connected with two adjacent ones of the links, and a plurality of filing leaves fixedly connected to the hinge members respectively.

.In testimony whereof, I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

v ELLIS T. SILVIUS.

Witnesses:

P. A. HAvELIoK, 7 J. H. GARDNER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the "Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. G. 

